FARGO – Federal prosecutors say they are cutting into an opioid pipeline that for the past five years has been moving oxycodone pills from Detroit to three American Indian reservations in North Dakota.
U.S. Attorney Drew Wrigley of North Dakota said Thursday that 26 people have been charged in the case dubbed Operation Blue Prairie. Wrigley says tens of thousands of pills with a street value of at least $2.5 million have been sold primarily on the Turtle Mountain, Spirit Lake and Fort Berthold reservations.
He says nine defendants have connections to Detroit and the other 17 are North Dakotans who helped with distribution.